Last Tuesday, the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island filed a lawsuit against Gov. Dan McKee and several other state employees, alleging the defendants violated the constitutional rights of a group of peaceful protestors during McKee’s State of the State address earlier this year. The lawsuit, filed in federal court, seeks declaratory, injunctive and compensatory relief.
The suit alleges that the defendants prevented the rallygoers from engaging in peaceful protest activities and from “effectively exercising their rights of free speech and to petition the government.” The defendants include McKee, Chief of R.I. Capitol Police Matthew Sutton, two other officials and 10 unidentified members of the R.I. Capitol Police or R.I. State Police.
The protest was organized by Harrison Tuttle, the former president of the now-dissolved Black Lives Matter R.I. PAC. Tuttle enlisted the support of the Rhode Island Homeless Advocacy Project in planning the rally, RIHAP Executive Director Eric Hirsch wrote in an email to The Herald. The ACLU of R.I. filed the suit on behalf of Tuttle, Hirsch and RIHAP.
Dubbed the “People’s State of the State” address, the rally was intended to “highlight inaction and deficiencies by the McKee administration to address the housing crisis and homelessness in Rhode Island,” the suit reads.
Upon arriving at the State House, the protesters were met with police officers who barred their access to the State House Rotunda — where the rally was planned — and signs stating the space had been reserved by the Department of Administration. Yet, the rotunda remained vacant throughout McKee’s address, the suit alleges.
The plaintiffs believe the area was closed off in an effort to forestall the planned protest, according to the suit.
By implementing these restrictions, the suit claims, the defendants violated the plaintiffs’ First Amendment rights to assembly, speech and petitioning the government for a redress of their grievances.
“We felt the governor was trying to avoid having his guests hear our criticism that he had failed to do enough to get hundreds of people off the street into shelter and housing,” Hirsch wrote.
State facilities may be used for special events so long as they do not interfere with the day-to-day activities of the Rhode Island government or “with the inherent right of Rhode Island citizens to exercise free speech and petition government for redress of grievances,” according to a document by the Department of Administration’s Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance detailing policies for the use of the State House.
It is unclear whether the rotunda must be reserved for rallies.
In February, Tuttle told WPRI 12 that “it is not my knowledge that Rhode Islanders have to reserve a spot to assemble their First Amendment right.”
Hirsch wrote that, to his knowledge, Tuttle “did not reserve the Rotunda for the rally.”
The suit also alleges that the defendants violated the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause. Non-protestors were allowed access to the spaces from which the protesters were barred. Thus, the suit claims, the restriction was “content-based and viewpoint-based.”
The plaintiffs are seeking three forms of relief, including injunctive relief to prohibit the defendants from “imposing similar restrictions on the exercise of First Amendment rights” in the future, according to the suit.
If granted, the injunction will “allow this rally to take place without interference next January,” wrote Steven Brown, the executive director of the ACLU of R.I., in an email to The Herald.
The suit also seeks a declaratory judgment that would “reaffirm the rights of the public to use the State House Rotunda as a public forum for free speech activity,” Steven Brown added.
Additionally, the suit seeks for the plaintiffs to be awarded compensatory or nominal damages against the unidentified police officers.
McKee’s office and the DCAMM did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
Robert Creamer, the public information officer for the R.I. Department of Public Safety, wrote in an email to The Herald that the department does “not comment on pending litigation.”
Lev Kotler-Berkowitz is a senior staff writer covering city and state politics. He is from the Boston area and is a junior concentrating in Political Science and Economics. In his free time, Lev can be found playing baseball or running around with his dog.
